Copy and paste this worksheet as a separate page linked to the Homepage of your portfolio. DO NOT type your answers on THIS document because it needs to be used by other students. The title of your page which replies to these questions is linked to your portfolio and should begin with the first initials of your first and last name. (In my case, the link to this worksheet from my portfolio page would read fryellowface.)
You may earn a maximum of 3 points toward your final grade by doing the above and answering the questions and submitting them on time (no later than Friday, September 29). Any worksheets submitted after the deadline will get a 0.
You will be rewarded a maximum of 3 points if I judge your work to be above average. You will receive 2 points if your work is average, that is it may have a few minor mistakes in some of the answers but demonstrates correct grammar and indicates that some, but not all, of the answers, are acceptable and well expressed. You will earn only 1 point if you simply answered the questions and/or if you use poor grammar and if there are signs that you have not read the material on which your answers are based.
Note: Like Execution of Justice, the dramatic action in this play is organized to flow differently from that of other plays this semester. For one thing, Hwang has built his play around himself and quotes from the New York Times and other media sources. And like Execution of Justice, this approach to the construction of a play is unique and often challenging to readers. I think the approach is generally effective. It is also suited to be examined thru Ball’s method of analysis. However, I will keep the same set of questions intact that were asked of Execution.
1. You may identify the stasis in the play but it isn’t necessarily at the beginning of the play. Where is it and who does it involve?
Yellow Face takes place during the 1990's in the cities of New York, Los Angeles, Washington D.C., Boston, San Francisco, and the Guizhou Province in China. The date and location of the play's actions vary dramatically throughout the different scenes of the play and often bounce back and forth between past, present, and future due to the play's documentary based framework. The main characters of the play are David Henry Hwang, the author of Yellow Face and the playwright of the fictional play, Face Value. DHH is an outspoken advocate for Asian Americans in the United States, particularly how they are portrayed in the media and in the theatre. Other key figures include Henry Yuan Hwang, David's father and successful Asian American banker and Chinese immigrant and Marcus G. Dahlman, aka Marcus Gee, the fictional caucasian star of David's show Face Value. The stasis of Yellow Face involves the controversy of the casting of Jonathan Pryce, a white actor, as a Vietnamese character in the Broadway musical, the Miss Saigon. Unhappy with the misrepresentation of the Asian American community in the theatre, David writes his show, Face Value as a reaction to the casting of Pryce and ironically casts Marcus G. Dahlman as the leading actor believing that Marcus is Asian, when is in fact, white.
2. Ball points out that the intrusion sometimes occurs late in the dramatic action. What is the intrusion that breaks the stasis in Execution of Justice and how is it broken?
The intrusion of Yellow Face occurs when David decides to create a fake identity for Marcus and give him the stage name of Marcus Gee in an attempt to hide his identity. This lie acts as the intrusion of the play because prior to this moment, the dramatic action of the play has yet to ensue. Prior to the creation of Marcus's false identity, the play remains rather static. Upon the creation of Marcus Gee, the play takes a turn for the dramatic as David creates a mask for Marcus to hide his own identity behind. Eventually, the mask becomes Marcus's face as he claims his ethnic background of being a Russian Siberian Jew, which is allegedly Asian since Siberia is directly North of China. This identity is blown out of proportion as Marcus receives widespread support and recognition for his work to advocate on behalf of the Asian American community through his stage work in the Face Value and the nationally touring production of The King and I. Marcus's success leads to conflict between David and himself due to Marcus's success and the government investigation of the Asian American community during the late 1990s making this scene the intrusion of the show.
3. Why do the events of the play take place at this particular time and place? In other words, what is the unique factor that is out of the ordinary that causes a turn of events to take place? Hint: what is the heart of the play? How does the title figure in this?
This is the day that David Henry Hwang, an established Asian American playwright discovers that a white male has been cast to play a Vietnamese character in the Broadway production of Miss Saigon which inspires David to write his own play speaking against the controversy of color-blind casting and the misrepresentation of the Asian American population. The unique factor of the play, Yellow Face, is that due to its documentary based aspects, it starts in media res, or in the middle of the story since David is already an established Asian American playwright and public figure. The play also follows the production of several plays including Miss Saigon, Face Value, The King and I, and ironically, Yellow Face, in a sort of paradoxical nature. The common thread between all of the shows mentioned in the play is the controversy that surrounds their color-blind casting of Asian roles.
4. State the dramatic question that must be answered by the end of the play? (Ordinarily, the dramatic question shares a close connection with the intrusion.
The dramatic question of Yellow Face is: Will Marcus's identity as a white male be exposed destroying David's reputation as an Asian American role model? The dramatic question is answered at the end of the play as David and Marcus both agree to admit Marcus's true identity as a white male in order to elevate any government controversy and David admits that Marcus is actually a fictional character in his play Yellow Face. At the same time, David's reputation as an Asian American role model is maintained.
5. Use Hwang’s “character” to answer the questions concerning character. Ball says a character is revealed by what he/she does, ie. The dramatic actions that are taken. Examine what these particular characters want. The wants of a character often encounter obstacles that get in the way of achieving those wants. Ball says there are 4 kinds of obstacles that frustrate the wants of a character. They are: a. Me against myself, b. Me against another individual, c. Me against society (that is law, social norms, etc.) and, d. Me against fate, the universe, natural forces, God or the gods. In answering these questions be sure to point to the particular obstacles that demonstrate these obstacles facing each of the lawyers.
The conflicts within the play Yellow Face can all be illustrated through the character of David Henry Hwang. First David faces conflict within himself because of his hypocritical identity as an Asian American. He questions his choice to lie about Marcus's ethnicity as Marcus becomes famous for the lie that David created. In the end of the play, David's conflict within himself comes to a head when he acknowledges the fact that he himself created a mask of his own identity as an Asian American as he discusses his conflict with Marcus, finally admitting that Marcus is simply a fictional character and an illustration of the American Dream, where anyone can be anyone they choose to be. The other conflict in the show involves David with "white" America. David is constantly trying to fight for his rights and independence as an Asian American, trying to aid in the proliferation of Asain Americans in the mainstream media and specifically the theatre community in America during the 1990s. This conflict is illustrated through his many encounters with the reporters and the anonymous interviewer. David faces conflict with Marcus as he and Marcus often fight about Marcus's theatrical fame and widespread popularity all because of the falsified identity that was created for him by David. This conflict comes to a head after the Benefit in D.C. when they argued outside in front of Leah about Marcus's choice to perpetually lie about his identity.
6. The most important information in most plays takes place during theatrical moments. Identify the most theatrical moments in Yellow Face.
The most theatrical moment of the show is when David discovers that Marcus is actually white and not Asian and David attempts to cover up the lie in the press. The theatricality of this moment is created through the facial expressions and interjections of David Henry Hwang during Marcus's interview with the Asian students at the University. David interjects often during the interview and talks over Marcus in an often rude an abrasive tone in order to make sure that Marcus does not say anything wrong or incorrect or blow his cover. The theatricality is also furthered through the comedic aspect of the scene as David stumbles and struggles to find the right words to say as he creates the fake persona of Marcus Gee.
Copy and paste this worksheet as a separate page linked to the Homepage of your portfolio. DO NOT type your answers on THIS document because it needs to be used by other students. The title of your page which replies to these questions is linked to your portfolio and should begin with the first initials of your first and last name. (In my case, the link to this worksheet from my portfolio page would read fryellowface.)
You may earn a maximum of 3 points toward your final grade by doing the above and answering the questions and submitting them on time (no later than Friday, September 29). Any worksheets submitted after the deadline will get a 0.
You will be rewarded a maximum of 3 points if I judge your work to be above average. You will receive 2 points if your work is average, that is it may have a few minor mistakes in some of the answers but demonstrates correct grammar and indicates that some, but not all, of the answers, are acceptable and well expressed. You will earn only 1 point if you simply answered the questions and/or if you use poor grammar and if there are signs that you have not read the material on which your answers are based.
Note: Like Execution of Justice, the dramatic action in this play is organized to flow differently from that of other plays this semester. For one thing, Hwang has built his play around himself and quotes from the New York Times and other media sources. And like Execution of Justice, this approach to the construction of a play is unique and often challenging to readers. I think the approach is generally effective. It is also suited to be examined thru Ball’s method of analysis. However, I will keep the same set of questions intact that were asked of Execution.
1. You may identify the stasis in the play but it isn’t necessarily at the beginning of the play. Where is it and who does it involve?
Yellow Face takes place during the 1990's in the cities of New York, Los Angeles, Washington D.C., Boston, San Francisco, and the Guizhou Province in China. The date and location of the play's actions vary dramatically throughout the different scenes of the play and often bounce back and forth between past, present, and future due to the play's documentary based framework. The main characters of the play are David Henry Hwang, the author of Yellow Face and the playwright of the fictional play, Face Value. DHH is an outspoken advocate for Asian Americans in the United States, particularly how they are portrayed in the media and in the theatre. Other key figures include Henry Yuan Hwang, David's father and successful Asian American banker and Chinese immigrant and Marcus G. Dahlman, aka Marcus Gee, the fictional caucasian star of David's show Face Value. The stasis of Yellow Face involves the controversy of the casting of Jonathan Pryce, a white actor, as a Vietnamese character in the Broadway musical, the Miss Saigon. Unhappy with the misrepresentation of the Asian American community in the theatre, David writes his show, Face Value as a reaction to the casting of Pryce and ironically casts Marcus G. Dahlman as the leading actor believing that Marcus is Asian, when is in fact, white.
2. Ball points out that the intrusion sometimes occurs late in the dramatic action. What is the intrusion that breaks the stasis in Execution of Justice and how is it broken?
The intrusion of Yellow Face occurs when David decides to create a fake identity for Marcus and give him the stage name of Marcus Gee in an attempt to hide his identity. This lie acts as the intrusion of the play because prior to this moment, the dramatic action of the play has yet to ensue. Prior to the creation of Marcus's false identity, the play remains rather static. Upon the creation of Marcus Gee, the play takes a turn for the dramatic as David creates a mask for Marcus to hide his own identity behind. Eventually, the mask becomes Marcus's face as he claims his ethnic background of being a Russian Siberian Jew, which is allegedly Asian since Siberia is directly North of China. This identity is blown out of proportion as Marcus receives widespread support and recognition for his work to advocate on behalf of the Asian American community through his stage work in the Face Value and the nationally touring production of The King and I. Marcus's success leads to conflict between David and himself due to Marcus's success and the government investigation of the Asian American community during the late 1990s making this scene the intrusion of the show.
3. Why do the events of the play take place at this particular time and place? In other words, what is the unique factor that is out of the ordinary that causes a turn of events to take place? Hint: what is the heart of the play? How does the title figure in this?
This is the day that David Henry Hwang, an established Asian American playwright discovers that a white male has been cast to play a Vietnamese character in the Broadway production of Miss Saigon which inspires David to write his own play speaking against the controversy of color-blind casting and the misrepresentation of the Asian American population. The unique factor of the play, Yellow Face, is that due to its documentary based aspects, it starts in media res, or in the middle of the story since David is already an established Asian American playwright and public figure. The play also follows the production of several plays including Miss Saigon, Face Value, The King and I, and ironically, Yellow Face, in a sort of paradoxical nature. The common thread between all of the shows mentioned in the play is the controversy that surrounds their color-blind casting of Asian roles.
4. State the dramatic question that must be answered by the end of the play? (Ordinarily, the dramatic question shares a close connection with the intrusion.
The dramatic question of Yellow Face is: Will Marcus's identity as a white male be exposed destroying David's reputation as an Asian American role model? The dramatic question is answered at the end of the play as David and Marcus both agree to admit Marcus's true identity as a white male in order to elevate any government controversy and David admits that Marcus is actually a fictional character in his play Yellow Face. At the same time, David's reputation as an Asian American role model is maintained.
5. Use Hwang’s “character” to answer the questions concerning character. Ball says a character is revealed by what he/she does, ie. The dramatic actions that are taken. Examine what these particular characters want. The wants of a character often encounter obstacles that get in the way of achieving those wants. Ball says there are 4 kinds of obstacles that frustrate the wants of a character. They are: a. Me against myself, b. Me against another individual, c. Me against society (that is law, social norms, etc.) and, d. Me against fate, the universe, natural forces, God or the gods. In answering these questions be sure to point to the particular obstacles that demonstrate these obstacles facing each of the lawyers.
The conflicts within the play Yellow Face can all be illustrated through the character of David Henry Hwang. First David faces conflict within himself because of his hypocritical identity as an Asian American. He questions his choice to lie about Marcus's ethnicity as Marcus becomes famous for the lie that David created. In the end of the play, David's conflict within himself comes to a head when he acknowledges the fact that he himself created a mask of his own identity as an Asian American as he discusses his conflict with Marcus, finally admitting that Marcus is simply a fictional character and an illustration of the American Dream, where anyone can be anyone they choose to be. The other conflict in the show involves David with "white" America. David is constantly trying to fight for his rights and independence as an Asian American, trying to aid in the proliferation of Asain Americans in the mainstream media and specifically the theatre community in America during the 1990s. This conflict is illustrated through his many encounters with the reporters and the anonymous interviewer. David faces conflict with Marcus as he and Marcus often fight about Marcus's theatrical fame and widespread popularity all because of the falsified identity that was created for him by David. This conflict comes to a head after the Benefit in D.C. when they argued outside in front of Leah about Marcus's choice to perpetually lie about his identity.
6. The most important information in most plays takes place during theatrical moments. Identify the most theatrical moments in Yellow Face.
The most theatrical moment of the show is when David discovers that Marcus is actually white and not Asian and David attempts to cover up the lie in the press. The theatricality of this moment is created through the facial expressions and interjections of David Henry Hwang during Marcus's interview with the Asian students at the University. David interjects often during the interview and talks over Marcus in an often rude an abrasive tone in order to make sure that Marcus does not say anything wrong or incorrect or blow his cover. The theatricality is also furthered through the comedic aspect of the scene as David stumbles and struggles to find the right words to say as he creates the fake persona of Marcus Gee.